Waters Corporation $WAT Shares Sold by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Key Points

• Impax Asset Management cut its Waters position by 85.7% in the second quarter, selling 269,566 shares and retaining 45,018 shares valued at $16.9 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 94.01% of Waters stock.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with Waters carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $420.35. Recent targets range from $345 to $420, while three analysts rate the stock a Strong Buy.
• Waters exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.05 in EPS versus a $3.01 estimate and $1.65 billion in revenue versus $1.62 billion expected. The company issued fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $14.45 to $14.65, while shares recently traded at $405.62.

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its position in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 85.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,018 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 269,566 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc's holdings in Waters were worth $16,883,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its position in shares of Waters by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,890,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Waters by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $638,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its stake in Waters by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co grew its stake in Waters by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 1,330 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $396,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Waters by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered Waters from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Waters from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $420.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $420.35.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.94, for a total transaction of $1,442,930.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,086,515.52. This represents a 16.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Waters Stock Performance

Waters stock opened at $405.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $282.77 and a 12-month high of $421.74. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $380.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $346.78. The company has a market capitalization of $39.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 101.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.19.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.01 by $0.04. Waters had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 3.58%.The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.95 earnings per share. Waters's revenue for the quarter was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Waters

Waters Corporation is a global provider of analytical instruments, software and services for laboratory and research applications. The company designs, manufactures and sells technologies centered on liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, separation science, and related sample preparation and detection systems. Its product portfolio includes chromatographs, mass spectrometers, columns and consumables, laboratory informatics and workflow software, as well as technical support and training services that help customers run and interpret complex analyses.

Waters serves a wide range of end markets that include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, contract research and testing laboratories, academic and government research institutions, clinical diagnostics, food and environmental testing, and industrial and chemical manufacturers.

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